First government of Pedro Sánchez

The first government of Pedro Sánchez was formed on 7 June 2018, following the latter's election as Prime Minister of Spain by the Congress of Deputies on 1 June and his swearing-in on 2 June, as a result of the success of a motion of no confidence against Mariano Rajoy.^[1] It succeeded the second Rajoy government and was the Government of Spain from 7 June 2018 to 13 January 2020, a total of 585 days, or 1 year, 7 months and 6 days.

1st government of Pedro Sánchez
Government of Spain
2018–2020
The government in June 2018 (top left), July 2018 (top right) and October 2018 (bottom).
Date formed	7 June 2018
Date dissolved	13 January 2020
People and organisations
Monarch	Felipe VI
Prime Minister	Pedro Sánchez
Deputy Prime Minister	Carmen Calvo
No. of ministers	17[a]
Total no. of members	19[a]
Member party	PSOE[b]
Status in legislature	Minority government (2018–2019) Caretaker government (2019–2020)
Opposition party	PP
Opposition leader	Pablo Casado
History
Outgoing election	April 2019 general election November 2019 general election
Legislature terms	12th Cortes Generales 13th Cortes Generales
Incoming formation	2018 vote of no confidence
Outgoing formation	2019–2020 government formation
Predecessor	Rajoy II
Successor	Sánchez II

The cabinet comprised members of the PSOE (including its sister party, the Socialists' Party of Catalonia, PSC) and a number of independents.^[2][3] It was nicknamed as the "beautiful government" (Spanish: gobierno bonito) by the media, because its composition was purposely leaked in a slow cascade of surprise, well-received announcements in the days prior to its formation in order to heighten the positive media coverage on the new appointments.^[4][5][6][7] It also became the government with the most female ministers in the country's history and in the world at the time, with 11 out of 17 ministries held by women or 64.7% of the total.^[8][9]

The government was defeated in the parliamentary vote of the 2019 General State Budget bill, prompting Sánchez to dissolve the Cortes and call a snap election; as a result, this was the shortest government since the Spanish transition to democracy—not counting acting periods—lasting for 10 months before an election was held.^[10] It was automatically dismissed on 29 April 2019 as a consequence of the April 2019 general election, but remained in acting capacity until the next government was sworn in.^[11][12]

Investiture

Main article: 2018 vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy

Motion of no confidence Pedro Sánchez (PSOE)
Ballot →		1 June 2018
Required majority →		176 out of 350 Y
	Yes • PSOE (84) • UP–ECP–EM (67) • ERC (9) • PDeCAT (8) • PNV (5) • Compromís (4) • EH Bildu (2) • NCa (1)	180 / 350
	No • PP (134) • Cs (32) • UPN (2) • FAC (1)	169 / 350
	Abstentions • CCa (1)	1 / 350
	Absentees	0 / 350
Sources[1][13]

Cabinet changes

Sánchez's first government saw a number of cabinet changes during its tenure:

• On 13 June 2018, Màxim Huerta stepped down as Minister of Culture and Sports after it was revealed that he had been sanctioned for using a shell corporation as a means for tax avoidance between 2006 and 2008.^[14][15] He was succeeded by José Guirao.^[16]
• On 11 September 2018, Carmen Montón announced her resignation as Minister of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare after evidence was uncovered that she had obtained a master's degree from the King Juan Carlos University without attending most classes, amid other irregularities.^[17][18] She was succeeded by María Luisa Carcedo.^[19]

From 29 April 2019, Sánchez's cabinet took on acting duties for the duration of the government formation process resulting from the April 2019 general election. This lasted for an estimated 259 days and saw a new general election being held in the meantime. A number of ministers renounced their posts throughout this period, with the ordinary duties of their ministries being transferred to other cabinet members as a result of Sánchez being unable to appoint replacements while in acting role.

• On 21 May 2019, Meritxell Batet was elected President of the Congress of Deputies of the 13th Legislature, a position incompatible with her post as acting Minister of Territorial Policy and Civil Service. Luis Planas, acting Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, took on the ordinary discharge of duties of Batet's vacant ministry.^[20]
• On 30 November 2019, Josep Borrell renounced his position as acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation in order to become High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy in the Von der Leyen Commission. Margarita Robles, acting Minister of Defence, took on the ordinary discharge of duties of Borrell's vacant ministry.^[21]

Council of Ministers

The Council of Ministers was structured into the offices for the prime minister, the deputy prime minister, 17 ministries and the post of the spokesperson of the Government.^[22][23][24]

← Sánchez I Government → (7 June 2018 – 13 January 2020)
Portfolio	Name	Party		Took office	Left office	Ref.
Prime Minister	Pedro Sánchez		PSOE	2 June 2018	8 January 2020	[25]
Deputy Prime Minister Minister of the Presidency, Relations with the Cortes and Equality	Carmen Calvo		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[26] [27]
Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation	Josep Borrell		PSOE	7 June 2018	30 November 2019	[27]
Minister of Justice	Dolores Delgado		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Defence	Margarita Robles		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Finance	María Jesús Montero		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of the Interior	Fernando Grande-Marlaska		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Development	José Luis Ábalos		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Education and Vocational Training Spokesperson of the Government	Isabel Celaá		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27] [28]
Minister of Labour, Migration and Social Security	Magdalena Valerio		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Industry, Trade and Tourism	Reyes Maroto		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food	Luis Planas		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Territorial Policy and Civil Service	Meritxell Batet		PSOE (PSC)	7 June 2018	20 May 2019	[27]
Minister for the Ecological Transition	Teresa Ribera		PSOE	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Culture and Sports	Màxim Huerta		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 June 2018	[27]
Minister of Economy and Enterprise	Nadia Calviño		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Minister of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare	Carmen Montón		PSOE	7 June 2018	11 September 2018	[27]
Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities	Pedro Duque		PSOE (Ind.)	7 June 2018	13 January 2020	[27]
Changes June 2018
Portfolio	Name	Party		Took office	Left office	Ref.
Minister of Culture and Sports	José Guirao		PSOE (Ind.)	14 June 2018	13 January 2020	[29]
Changes September 2018
Portfolio	Name	Party		Took office	Left office	Ref.
Minister of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare	María Luisa Carcedo		PSOE	12 September 2018	13 January 2020	[30]
Changes 2019
Portfolio	Name	Party		Took office	Left office	Ref.
Minister of Territorial Policy and Civil Service	Luis Planas took on the ordinary discharge of duties from 20 May 2019 to 13 January 2020.[31]
Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation	Margarita Robles took on the ordinary discharge of duties from 30 November 2019 to 13 January 2020.[32]

Departmental structure

Pedro Sánchez's first government was organised into several superior and governing units, whose number, powers and hierarchical structure varied depending on the ministerial department.^[24]

Unit/body rank

• (■) Secretary of state
• (■) Undersecretary
• (■) Director-general
• (●) Autonomous agency
• (◆) Military & intelligence agency

Office (Original name)	Portrait	Name	Took office	Left office	Alliance/party			Ref.
Prime Minister's Office
Prime Minister (Presidencia del Gobierno)		Pedro Sánchez	2 June 2018	8 January 2020			PSOE	[33]
	19 June 2018 – 28 January 2020 (■) Cabinet of the Prime Minister's Office–Chief of Staff (■) Deputy Chief of Staff (■) Department of National Affairs (■) Department of Economic Affairs (■) Directorate for Institutional Affairs (■) General Secretariat of the Prime Minister's Office (■) Deputy General Secretariat (■) Department of Protocol (■) Department of Security (■) General Secretariat for International Affairs, European Union, G20 and Global Security (■) Department of International Affairs and Global Security (■) Department of European Affairs and G20 (■) Directorate for Analysis and Studies (■) Department of National Security (■) State Secretariat for Press (■) Directorate-General for National Information (■) Directorate-General for Communication (■) Directorate-General for International Information (■) High Commissioner for the Fight against Child Poverty (■) Directorate of the Office of the High Commissioner for the Fight against Child Poverty (■) High Commissioner for the 2030 Agenda (■) Directorate of the Office of the High Commissioner for the 2030 Agenda
Deputy Prime Minister (Vicepresidencia del Gobierno)		Carmen Calvo	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[34]
	See Ministry of the Presidency, Relations with the Cortes and Equality
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation (Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores, Unión Europea y Cooperación)		Josep Borrell	7 June 2018	30 November 2019 (renounced)			PSOE	[35] [36] [37]
		Margarita Robles (ordinary discharge of duties)	30 November 2019	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Foreign Affairs (■) Directorate-General for Foreign Policy and Security (■) Directorate-General for the United Nations and Human Rights (■) Directorate-General for the Maghreb, the Mediterranean and the Middle East (■) Directorate-General for Africa (■) Directorate-General for North America, Eastern Europe, Asia and the Pacific (■) Directorate-General for International Economic Relations (■) State Secretariat for the European Union (■) Directorate-General for Integration and Coordination of General Affairs of the European Union (■) Directorate-General for Coordination of the Internal Market and other European Union Policies (■) Directorate-General for Western, Central and South East Europe (■) State Secretariat for International Cooperation and for Ibero-America and the Caribbean (■) Directorate-General for Sustainable Development Policies (■) Directorate-General for Ibero-America and the Caribbean (■) State Secretariat for Global Spain (est. 12 Oct 2018) (■) Global Spain Office (est. 12 Oct 2018) (■) Undersecretariat of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for the Foreign Service (■) Directorate-General for Spaniards Abroad and Consular and Migratory Affairs (disest. 12 Oct 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Spaniards Abroad and Consular Affairs (est. 12 Oct 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Diplomatic Communication and Information (■) Introducer of Ambassadors
Ministry of Justice
Ministry of Justice (Ministerio de Justicia)		Dolores Delgado	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)	[36] [38] [39]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Justice (■) General Secretariat for the Administration of Justice (■) Directorate-General for Relations with the Administration of Justice (■) Directorate-General for Modernization of Justice, Technological Development and Asset Recovery and Management (from 26 Aug 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Modernization of Justice, Technological Development and Asset Recovery and Management (until 26 Aug 2018) (■) Directorate-General for International Legal Cooperation and Relations with Religions (disest. 26 Aug 2018) (■) Directorate-General for International Legal Cooperation, Relations with Religions and Human Rights (est. 26 Aug 2018) (■) Undersecretariat of Justice (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Registries and Notaries (■) Directorate-General for Historical Memory (est. 30 Jun 2018) (■) Office of the Solicitor General of the State–Directorate of the State Legal Service
Ministry of Defence
Ministry of Defence (Ministerio de Defensa)		Margarita Robles	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)	[36] [40] [41]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Defence (■) Directorate-General for Armament and Materiel (■) Directorate-General for Economic Affairs (■) Directorate-General for Infrastructure (■) Undersecretariat of Defence (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Personnel (■) Directorate-General for Military Recruitment and Teaching (■) General Secretariat for Defence Policy (■) Directorate-General for Defence Policy (◆) Armed Forces (■) Defence Staff–Chief of the Defence Staff (■) Army–Chief of Staff of the Army (■) Navy–Chief of Staff of the Navy (■) Air Force–Chief of Staff of the Air Force (◆) National Intelligence Centre (■) State Secretariat–Directorate of the National Intelligence Centre (■) General Secretariat of the National Intelligence Centre (■) Technical Directorate for Resources (■) Technical Directorate for Intelligence (■) Technical Directorate for Intelligence Support
Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Finance (Ministerio de Hacienda)		María Jesús Montero	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [42]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Finance (■) General Secretariat for Regional and Local Financing (■) Directorate-General for Taxes (■) Directorate-General for the Cadastre (■) Central Economic-Administrative Court (■) Directorate-General for the Regulation of Gambling (■) State Secretariat for Budgets and Expenditure (■) Directorate-General for Budgets (■) Directorate-General for Personnel Costs and Public Pensions (■) Directorate-General for European Funds (■) Undersecretariat of Finance (■) Office of the Comptroller General of the State Administration (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for the State Heritage (■) Inspectorate-General (■) Directorate-General for Rationalization and Centralization of Contracting
Ministry of the Interior
Ministry of the Interior (Ministerio del Interior)		Fernando Grande-Marlaska	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)	[36] [43]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Security (■) Directorate-General of the Police (■) Directorate-General of the Civil Guard (■) General Secretariat for Penitentiary Institutions (■) Directorate-General for Criminal Enforcement and Social Reintegration (■) Directorate-General for International Relations and Foreigners (■) Undersecretariat of the Interior (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Internal Policy (■) Directorate-General for Traffic (■) Directorate-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies (■) Directorate-General for Support to Victims of Terrorism
Ministry of Development
Ministry of Development (Ministerio de Fomento)		José Luis Ábalos	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[36] [44]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Infrastructure, Transport and Housing (■) General Secretariat for Infrastructure (■) Directorate-General for Roads (■) General Secretariat for Transport (■) Directorate-General for Civil Aviation (■) Directorate-General for the Merchant Marine (■) Directorate-General for Land Transport (■) General Secretariat for Housing (■) Directorate-General for Architecture, Housing and Soil (■) Undersecretariat of Development (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Economic Programming and Budgets (■) Directorate-General for Organization and Inspection (■) Directorate-General for the National Geographic Institute
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional)		Isabel Celaá	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [45]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Education and Vocational Training (■) Directorate-General for Evaluation and Territorial Cooperation (■) Directorate-General for Vocational Training (■) Directorate-General for Educational Planning and Management (■) Undersecretariat of Education and Vocational Training (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Labour, Migration and Social Security
Ministry of Labour, Migration and Social Security (Ministerio de Trabajo, Migraciones y Seguridad Social)		Magdalena Valerio	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [46]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Migration (■) General Secretariat for Immigration and Emigration (■) Directorate-General for Migration (■) Directorate-General for Integration and Humanitarian Attention (■) State Secretariat for Social Security (■) Directorate-General for Social Security Management (■) Office of the Comptroller General of the Social Security (■) State Secretariat for Employment (■) Directorate-General for Labour (■) Directorate-General for Self-Employment, the Social Economy and Corporate Social Responsibility (■) Undersecretariat of Labour, Migration and Social Security (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism
Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism (Ministerio de Industria, Comercio y Turismo)		Reyes Maroto	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [47]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Trade (■) Directorate-General for International Trade and Investments (■) Directorate-General for Trade Policy and Competitiveness (■) State Secretariat for Tourism (■) General Secretariat for Industry and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (■) Directorate-General for Industry and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (■) Undersecretariat of Industry, Trade and Tourism (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food
Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación)		Luis Planas	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [48]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) General Secretariat for Agriculture and Food (■) Directorate-General for Agricultural Production and Markets (■) Directorate-General for Health of Agricultural Production (■) Directorate-General for Rural Development and Forest Policy (disest. 22 Jul 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Rural Development, Innovation and Forest Policy (est. 22 Jul 2018) (■) Directorate-General for the Food Industry (■) General Secretariat for Fisheries (■) Directorate-General for Fishery Resources (■) Directorate-General for Fisheries Management and Aquaculture (■) Undersecretariat of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Services
Ministry of the Presidency, Relations with the Cortes and Equality
Ministry of the Presidency, Relations with the Cortes and Equality (Ministerio de la Presidencia, Relaciones con las Cortes e Igualdad)		Carmen Calvo	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [39] [49]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Relations with the Cortes (■) Directorate-General for Relations with the Cortes (■) State Secretariat for Equality (■) Government Delegation for Gender Violence (■) Directorate-General for Equality of Treatment and No Discrimination (disest. 30 Jun 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Equality of Treatment and Diversity (est. 30 Jun 2018) (■) Undersecretariat of the Presidency, Relations with the Cortes and Equality (■) Technical General Secretariat–Government Secretariat
Ministry of Territorial Policy and Civil Service
Ministry of Territorial Policy and Civil Service (Ministerio de Política Territorial y Función Pública)		Meritxell Batet	7 June 2018	20 May 2019 (renounced)			PSOE (PSC–PSOE)	[35] [36] [50]
		Luis Planas (ordinary discharge of duties)	20 May 2019	13 January 2020			PSOE
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Territorial Policy (■) General Secretariat for Territorial Coordination (■) Directorate-General for Regional and Local Cooperation (■) Directorate-General for Regional and Local Legal Regime (■) State Secretariat for the Civil Service (■) General Secretariat for Digital Administration (■) Directorate-General for the Civil Service (■) Directorate-General for Public Governance (■) Office for Conflicts of Interest (■) Undersecretariat of Territorial Policy and Civil Service (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Government Commissioner for the Demographic Challenge
Ministry for the Ecological Transition
Ministry for the Ecological Transition (Ministerio para la Transición Ecológica)		Teresa Ribera	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[35] [36] [51]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Energy (■) Directorate-General for Energy Policy and Mines (■) State Secretariat for Environment (■) Directorate-General for Water (■) Spanish Office for Climate Change (■) Directorate-General for Biodiversity and Environmental Quality (■) Directorate-General for Sustainability of the Coast and the Sea (■) Undersecretariat for the Ecological Transition (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Culture and Sports
Ministry of Culture and Sports (Ministerio de Cultura y Deporte)		Màxim Huerta	7 June 2018	13 June 2018 (resigned)			PSOE (Independent)	[35] [36] [52] [53]
		José Guirao	14 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) Undersecretariat of Culture and Sports (■) Technical General Secretariat (■) Directorate-General for Books and Promotion of Reading (■) Directorate-General for Cultural Industries and Cooperation (■) Directorate-General for Fine Arts (●) High Council for Sports (■) President's Office of the High Council for Sports (■) Directorate-General for Sports
Ministry of Economy and Enterprise
Ministry of Economy and Enterprise (Ministerio de Economía y Empresa)		Nadia Calviño	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)	[35] [36] [54]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Economy and Enterprise Support (■) General Secretariat for the Treasury and International Financing (■) Directorate-General for the Treasury and Financial Policy (■) Directorate-General for Economic Policy (■) Directorate-General for Macroeconomic Analysis (■) Directorate-General for Insurance and Pension Funds (■) State Secretariat for the Information Society and the Digital Agenda (until 25 Aug 2018) / State Secretariat for Digital Progress (from 25 Aug 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Telecommunications and Information Technologies (■) Undersecretariat of Economy and Enterprise (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare
Ministry of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare (Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social)		Carmen Montón	7 June 2018	11 September 2018 (resigned)			PSOE	[35] [36] [55]
		María Luisa Carcedo	12 September 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Social Services (■) Directorate-General of Services for Families and Children (■) Directorate-General for Disability Support Policies (disest. 25 Aug 2018) (■) Directorate-General for Disability Policies (est. 25 Aug 2018) (■) Government Delegation for the National Plan on Drugs (■) General Secretariat for Health and Consumer Affairs (■) Directorate-General for Public Health, Quality and Innovation (■) Directorate-General for the Basic Catalogue of Services of the National Health System and Pharmacy (■) Directorate-General for Professional Management (■) Directorate-General for Consumer Affairs (est. 25 Aug 2018) (■) Undersecretariat of Health, Consumer Affairs and Social Welfare (■) Technical General Secretariat
Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities
Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades)		Pedro Duque	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE (Independent)	[35] [36] [56]
	23 June 2018 – 29 January 2020 (■) State Secretariat for Universities, Research, Development and Innovation (■) General Secretariat for Universities (■) Directorate-General for Research, Development and Innovation (■) General Secretariat for Scientific Policy Coordination (■) Undersecretariat of Science, Innovation and Universities (■) Technical General Secretariat
Spokesperson of the Government
Spokesperson of the Government (Portavoz del Gobierno)		Isabel Celaá	7 June 2018	13 January 2020			PSOE	[28]

Notes

1. Does not include the Prime Minister.
2. Including PSC.